Card filing or grouping apparatus



Nov. 26, 1946. l. B.'WHETSTONE 2,411,645

CARD FILING 0R GROUPING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 17, 1936 11 Shuts-Shoot 1TENS In m /ntvm':

Aflameys N 1946. 1. B. WHETSTONE CARD FILING OR GROUPING APPARATUS FiledSept. 17, 1936 ll Sheets-Sheet 2 Nov. 26, 1946.

I. B. WHETSTONE CARD FILING OR GROUPING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 17, 19:56

11 Sheets-Sheet 3 1946. I. B. WHETSTONE CARD FILING OR GROUPINGAPPARATUS Filed Sept. 17, 1936 lIShaets-Sheet 5 N ,1946. l. a. WHETSTONECARD FILING 0R GROUPING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 17, 1936 11 Sheets-Sheet 61946. a. WHETSTONE CARD FILING 0R GROUPING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 17,1936 ll Sheets-Sheet 7 000009 ooeoooeooo oooooeoooa oooeoeoooa @eaesoaNov. 26, 1946. B. WHETSTONE 2,411,545

CARD FILING OR GROUPING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 1'7, 1936 ll Sheets-Sheet8 Nov. 26, 1946. 1. a. WHETSTONE CARD FILING OR GROUPING APPARATUS FiledSept. 17. 1936 fka Nov. 26, 1946. 1. a. WHETSTONE 2,411,645

CARD FILING OR GROUQING APPARATUS Filed SGPL 17, 1936 11 ShGGtS-Shefit11 Patented Nov. 26, 1946' CARD ml'NG R GROUPING APPARATUS Irene B.Whetstone, Chicago, 111., asslgnor to International Business Machin esCorporation, a

corporation of New York Application September 17, 1936, Serial No.101,20!

1 48 Claims.

My invention relates to card filing or grouping apparatus for use withwhat is commonly known as record-controlled equipment.

One of the objects of my invention is-to provide apparatus for groupingor bringing together two or more groups of punched cards, such as arecommonly used with tabulating equipment, which groups have previouslybeen brought into numerical or alphabetical sequence, the various groupstogether forming a complemental se- 2 been designed in the respectivespecies illustrated, to co-operate in efiecting this result. In theclaims, this structural detail and co-operative mechanism has beenreferred to as value difierentiating selective means. This means iscontinuously eflective for selectively causing ejecquence, the apparatusserving to group the cards into one common group arranged in consecutiveorder.

A further object of my invention is to provide improved apparatus forwithdrawing from a group oi such cards arranged in numerical sequenceany desired selection oi cards.

A further object of my invention is to provide apparatus forreassembling matched cards, some of which cards have previously beenwithdrawn from the matched group.

A further object of my invention is to provide apparatus for, assemblingin a predetermined order control records of like designation occurringin two or more groups.

M previously specified, a primary object of this invention, relating toall the species shown with exception of Fig. 19, is that of iilingcards; that is, bringing together two or more groups of cards ofcorrelated sequence to form one group of cards assembled in numericalorder. For example:

Original opposed Combined tion of any one oi a plurality of recordsunder going comparison, bearing a designation of a predetermined valueextreme, i. e., a high or low value as may be predetermined, of anyseries of designating characters, or any combination of the designatingcharacters of such series.

In the various species shown, this value difi'erentiating selectivemeans is combined with structural detail and mechanism for conveying thecards to a common receptacle and assembling them therein in a commongroup in correct numerical order. This structural detail and mechanismis sometimes referred to in the claims as correlating means and recordhandling means.

Heretoiore, data comparing machines designed to accomplish certainselective disposition of records undergoing comparison have requiredthat all unused columns in the designating fields of such records beprovided with perforations in the zero positions. For example, if thenumerical designations to be compared employed a maximum of six ordinalpositions in the designating fields oi the records, all recordsemploying designations of less than this established maximum wouldrequire zero perforations. All records, for example, numbered from 1 to9 would require five zero perforations preflxing these values. Thosenumbered from 10 to 99 would require four zero prefixes, etc.

The apparatus described herein requires no such auxiliary perforations.Comparison is made between corresponding ordinal positions in opposedrecords, and selection is enacted as a result of such comparison,independent of the condition of other ordinal columns in the designatingfields of records undergoing comparison.

Another advantage of the apparatus described herein over the othermachines of similar character is its capacity for handling (1. e,reading, comparing, and selecting) cards perforated in combinationalcode, such, for example, as is commonly employed for expressing analphabetical series, as well as in handling cards perforated in straightnumerical code in which each digit in a 0 to 9 series is represented bya single perioration.

For the purpose of illustration, the apparatus as shown is designed foruse with cards such as are commonly employed with well-known tabulatingequipment, in which each card is provided with operating or index pointpositions repressenting a numerical or an alphabetical series andcertain of these positions are perforated to make operative the specificalphabetical or numerical designations identifying a record. Theinvention however should not be limited to perforated means fordistinguishing a designation, as other means might readily be employed.

The apparatus may be used with cards such as are used in well knowntabulating machines in which each card is provided with one or moreperforations corresponding to the number of the card.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent fromthe description and claims.

In the drawings, in which several embodiments of my invention are shown:

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view of one emhodiment of my invention whichmechanica ly establishes a series of circuits for controlling recordselection;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the general arrangement of theapparatus;

Fig. 3 is a vertical fore-and-aft section of part of the apparatus,showing the motor drive for the sensing finger head, the selectors. andthe contact-shitting mechanism:

Fig. 4 is aplan view of the sensing finger head;

Fig. 5 iso vertical fore-and-aft section showing the sensing finger headand associated parts;

Fig. 6 is a. perspective view of the control for the card guide roller;1

Fig. 'i is a plan view showing the manual controller the selection ofthe units selector and the shiftable drive for the contact shiftingslide:

Fig. u is an elevational view of the right-hand end of 7. showing theshift for the selector drive and the contact slide drive:

Fig. 9 is an elevational view from the right of 10 is a bottom plan viewof the shiftable contacts for engaging contacts connected with the anvilbank;

Fig. 11 is an elevational. view. partly in vertical section, showing themanual adjustment for the stop which controls the operation of the stoprelay; T

Fig. 12 is a partial plan view showing the manually operable cam meansfor selectively disconnecting the drive between the selector units,showing also drive for the selector units an for the contact-carryingslide:

1'18. 13 is a, detail view showing in side elevatlon one of the selectorcontact devices;

Fig. 14 is a detail view of the indicator for showing the number ofidentification columns which are in the cards to be analyzed:

Fig. 15 is a detail sectional view showing the anvil bank:

Fig. 16 is a somewhat diagrammatic view showing the contactcomb andassociated contacts:

Fig. 1'! is a side elevational view of a change pinion mechanism:

Fig. 18 is an axial sectional view showing a difi'e'rent form ofselector contact device: 19 is a dia ammatic view showing a circuit andapparatus for withdrawing cards;

Fig. 191: is a part-elevational, part-perspective diagrammatic view.showing details of apparatus for use with the. circuit of Fig. 19;

Fig. zo'illustrates an embodiment of my invention in which the sensingis accomplished andrecord selection obtained mechanically;

Fig. 21 is a diagrammatic perspective view illustrating the operatingmechanism for the V embodiment illustrated in Fig.

Fig. 22 illustrates the arrangement of the cards and their movementduring operation of the embodiment illustratedfin Figs. 20 and 21 whensocalled master cards are employed as a means for gllaltlsiningmechanical selection in the process of Fig. 23 is a diagrammatic wiringdiagram of an electrically operated embodiment of fllingand matchingapparatus which is entirely record-controlled: and

Fig. 24 is a diagrammatic view of a circuit control for the embodimentillustrated in Fig. 23.

The card filing apparatus shown in Figs. 1 to 16, inclusive, comprisestwo holders or magazines l and I for holding complementary stacks ofcards, which cards have perforations corresponding to serial numbers ordesignations with at least one perforation for each order of the cardnumber, a removable filing receptacle I in which the cards from the twoholders are to be tiled in serial order, and means for selectivelywithdrawing the cards from the two holders and filing them irrthereceptacle in serial order comprising two groups of serislng contactfingers 4 (Figs. 1, 3 and b) one for each card holder. two reciprocableheads I (Figs. 2, 3 and 5) for periodically. bringing the sensingfingersjnto cooperating relation with respect to the cards. two contactapparatuses. one for each group of sensing fingers, each apparatuscomprising a plurality of finger-engaging contact devices or anvils i.one for each order in thekmaximum serial card number. said contactdevices being engageable by those sensing fingers 4 which pass throughthe card perforations. means I (Fig. l) {or feeding the cards from theholders into cooperative relation with respect to the sensing fingers,means 8 for removing the cards from cc-operative relation with respectto the sensing finger and depositing them in said filing receptacle l. aplurality of contact selector devices 0 (Figs. 1, 3 and 12), one foreach order in the maximum serial card number. each selector devicehaving a plurality of selectable contacts ll. one for each digit in theorder to which it corresponds, eachof said contacts being electricallyconnected with one or said contact fingers I, each selector device alsohaving a selector contact II for successively engaging the plurality ofselectable contacts IQ of the selector device. the selector contact ofthe selector device corresponding to the units order being connectedwith a current supply or line I! and each of the other selector contactsbeing electrically connected with one of the finger-engaging contactdevices or anvils l of the aforesaid contact appa ratus, the means forremoving the cards comprising a card elector it and means forcontrolling the action or the' elector comprising an election causingrelay I (Fig. 1) and a conditioning relay it. said election relay ithaving a circuit provided with two make-and-break devices it and II inseries, one or said make-and-break devices i! being closed following thedisengagement of the sensing fingers with respect to the card and theother make-and-break device ll being controlled by the conditioningrelay. said conditioninorelay it being provided with a circuit having aselector contact ll successiveh' engageable with the anviis I andautomatically endicated by said selector devices.

In a series of cards. identified by perforatio corresponding toconsecutive serial. numbers, one selector device I will be provided foreach order of the maximum card number; that is to say, there will beprovided a units selector device, a tens selector device, a hundredsselector device. etc. Transmission means are provided for driving eachof the contact selector devices of a higher order than the units devicefrom a contact selector device of a next lower order by a step-bystepmovement, so that at the end of a complete revolution of the unitsselector device the transmission will cause a one-step single digitmovement of the tens selector device, at the end 01' a completerevolution of the tens selector device the transmission will cause asingle one-step one digit movement of the hundreds selector device, etc.Means are provided for selectively disconnecting the transmissionbetween any two adlacent orders of the selector devices toenable theapparatus to be used with diflerent sets of cards havingdiflerentmaximum serial numbers. Means are also provided for preventingthe election of a card having a perforation in a column of a higherorder than the highest order of the number set up by the selectordevices 0. comprising a contact device I! (Fig. l) electricallyconnecting a disabling relay III with the anvil 6 corresponding to thenext higher order above the highest order of the number set up by theselector devices and a contact comb 2i electrically connecting all ofthe sensing fingers for this anvil with the power line H. The contactsI8, I! and 2| are all mounted on a carriage or slide Ila (Fig. 7) whichis automatically shifted from time to time so that -the contact (8 willbe electrically connected with the anvil corresponding to the highestorder of the number set up by the selectors 8, the contact is will beconnected with the anvil o! the next higher order, and the con tact IIwill be electrically connected with all of the sensing gerscorresponding to the anvil with which the contact I9 is connected.

A selective drive means is provided for the selector devices engageableselectively with that selector device 9 chosen for the units order.

Power means are provided for advancing the selector devices step-by-stepto correspond to the consecutive serial numbers or designations.

Indicating means 22 (Figs. '7 and 14) are provided for showing which ofthe selector devices is chosen as the units selector.

Means are provided for simultaneously disconnecting all of thetransmissions between the selector devices to enable the selectordevices to be manually set separably.

Before describing the apparatus in further detail, I will describe thearrangement and operation of the circuit and apparatus. indicated ingeneral in Fig. 1. This shows a selector circuit for use in connectionwith cards having nine columns for the identificationnumber, nineselectors 9 being shown one for each column in the identificationportion of the card; that is to say, one selector being provided forunits, another for tens. another for hundreds, etc. These selectors aresimilar or identical, each comprising a circular series of selectablecontacts Ill. one for each digit in the card column with which it isassociated, each of the contacts of a selector being individuallyelectrically connected with one of the sensing fingers l in the columnto which it corresponds. In Fig. 1, only one sensing finger I is shownfor each column, although it will be understood that there is a sensingfinger for each 2,41 riots 6 digit in the column; that is. it there areten digits in the units column there will be ten sensing fingers. eachfinger being individualy electrically connected with one of theselectable contacts III on the corresponding selector device.

Underneath each column of sensing fingers, and in alignment with thecolumn of sensing ringers. is an anvil or contact member 8.'thearrangement being such that if any sensing finger 4 passes through anopening in the card and ensages the anvil I underneath, a circuit may becompleted which will lead from the particular sensing ringer which haspassed through the card. through the anvil l and one of the conductors28 to'the movable contact ii on the selector of the next higher order.There is only one contact anvil for each column of sensing fingers.since this anvil may be universal for all or the contact fingers in acolumn or order. The sensing fingers are mounted on a head 5 which iscaused to reciprocate up and down periodically by means of a motor drivewhich may rotate the eccentric 24 (Figs. 1 and 3) operating in the slotII in the cocentric strap 18 on which the sensing finger head I ismounted. The same motor 21 (Fig. 3) which reciprocates the sensingfinger head a may also advance the selector devices 8 step-by -step tocorrespond to the consecutive serial numbers or designations of thecards being filed. In connection with this discussion, it will beunderstood that there are two or more sets of apparatus and circuits,such as shown in Fig. i. one for each of the holders I. 1. etc., of thecomplementary stacks of cards.

The feeding of a card from the holder into position underneath thesensing fingers is effected by means oi any suitable card feedingmechanism,

such as the card feeding slide 28 (Fig. l).

The election of a card from its position underneath the sensing fingersinto the filing receptacle is effected by any suitable card-electiondevice, such as a card pusher device or ejector i3 pivotally mounted at1! and shii'table to push the card sidewise from its position underneaththe sensing fingers 4 into the filing receptacle 8. The slide forfeeding the card from the card holder underneath the sensing fingers iscontrolled by a cam 30 (Fig. I) constantly driven by the motor 21 insuitable timed relation with respect to the reciprocation of the sensingfingers 4 and the step-by-step movement of the selectors I. Thisrotating cam It. however, has no eifect on the card feeding slide II,unless the latch ll pivotally mounted on the bell crank slide actuatinglever 32 is released. The card-ejecting pivoted push member I! isactuated by means of the relay II, the 'armature II of which is mountedon a lever ll pivotally mounted at and engageable with a suitable arm 18on the pivoted card pusher member (I. This cardeiecting relay, however.is not efiective until the contacts I! are moved into engagement and theretainer or latch I1 is moved out from underneath the tip of the cardpusher actuating lever ll. Both the latch ll. which controls the cardfeeding slide 2!, and the retainer 81, which controls the card-ejectingrelay II. are controlled by means of the conditioning relay ll, whichconditioning relay is in turn controlled by the co-operative action ofthe sensing fingers l and the selector devices I. If the perforations inthe card being sensed or analyzed are such that the contacts madebetween the sensing fingers 4 and the anvil banks I correspond to thecontacts established by the selector devices I. a

. 7 'series circuit will be established which will on- 'ergise theconditioning relay ll, causing the election oi the card alter it hasbeen analysed and causing the ieeding in oi another card underneath thesensing fingers.

In order to insure that the card elector does not operate until thesensing fingers have been withdrawn from the holes in the card, themakeand-break device I1 is provided in the circuit ,ior the ejectorrelay it. which make-and-break device is closed by the upward movementoi the sensing finger head 5, but not,however. until the sensing fingershave been completely withdrawn from. the holes in the card.

A suitable manually operable switch It is provided ior initiating theoperation of the machine and a suitable automatically operated relay 2!co-operating with the switch 2| is provided ior stopping the operationof the machine when it has run its iull course. as will be describedmore in detail later. Also, a suitable make-and-break relay device 20 isprovided in the circuit tor the conditioning relay II, in order toprevent the undesired ejection oi a card, which may have a periorationin a column oi a higher order than that corresponding to the highestorder indicated by the selector devices.

In describing the circuit for the selector devices. sensing fingers,anvil banks, and conditioning relay. I will assume three cases, one inwhich the perforations in the card being analyaed correspond to thenumber set upby the selector devices I; another in which the numberindicated by the periorations on the card being analyzed does notcorrespond to the number set up by the selector devices: and a third inwhich the order oi the number oi one oi the cards being analyzed is oi ahigher order than that set up by the selector devices. Assuming. forexample, that the card being analyzed is No. 222 and that the numberindicated by the selector devices is also No. 222, then the circuit willbe irom the right hand side oi the line l2, through the movable selectorcontact ii oi the units selector device to the No. 2 selectable contactit on this selector device. thence through a conductor II to the No. 2sensing finger l in the units column which has passed through the No. 2opening in the card into engagement with the units column anvil O;thence through a conductor II to the movable selector contact 'ii oi thetens selector device; thence to the No. 2 selectable contact II, on thetens selector device; thence through a conductor Al to the No. 2 sensingfinger l in the tens column which finger has passed through the No. 2hole in the card into engagement with the tens column anvil; thencethrough a conductor 22 to the movable selector contact ii oi thehundreds selector device to the No. 2 selectable contact on this device:thence through a conductor it to the No. 2

Ila of switch II. conductor II and switch It to the line wire ll. Thiswill cause energisation oi the conditioning relay ll, closing oi theswitch a ll, releasing oi the lever 24 and unlatching oi the latch 2|.Thereafter the head I closes the switch I! energizing the relay ll,causing the elector it to elect the cardinto the receptacle 2.Thereaiter. the earn It operates the ieed slide 20 to iced another cardunder the sensing lingers, the latch Ii relatching on the hook ll toprevent a repetition oi the ieeding action.

'rhus. ii there is correspondence between the holes in the card and theselector set-up. the card being analy d will be elected and another cardwill be ied on from the holder under the sensing fingers. As indicated,the energizatlon oi the conditioning relay l5 rocks the three-armedlever II, which is pivotally mounted at 4!, unlatching the armaturelever 2t oi the elector relay i4, closing the elector relayswitch It andreleasing the latch 3i which allows the card feeding slide 22 to beoperated-by means of the cam 30, the coil tension spring holding thefollower oi the bell crank lever It in engagement with the cam salt isrotated in. timedrelation with respect to the movement at the sensingfingers and selector devices. when the conditioning relay II isenergized and the upper end oi the lever it moved to the right. thelever 48 is latched in this position by the spring latch "a, the notchtiiboi which receives the ringer lie on the lever ll. The lever 48remains latched until the energiaation oi the electing relay llcauses-the finger "d on the lever "II to engage and release the latchlilo. thus releasing the lever it which is returned by the spring "c.

In this discussion, it is to be understood that the two sets of selectordevices and the associated mechanisms for the two complementary cardholders are operated in synchronism so that each set of selector devicessuccessively and simultaneously sets up corresponding numbers. Thus,

ii the No. 222 is set up on the selector devices for one card holder,No. 222 will also be, set up simultaneously on the selector devicescorresponding to the other card holder. Since it is assumed that thecards are complementary and together constitute a complete sequence, thecard called for by the selector devices will appear in one or the otherof the two card holders and will be elected therefrom when called for.

Considering now the case where the number set up by the selector devicesdoes not correspond to the numbers punched on the card being. analysed,and assuming. for example. that the card being analysed is No. 232,while the number set up by the selector devices is No. 222, it will beseen that the circuit for the conditioning 'relay will be discontinuous.Following the circuit under these assumed conditions. it will be fromone side ll of the line. through the No. 2 contact ll oi the unitsselector device I, through a conductor to the No. 2 sensing finger! oithe units column to the column No. 1 anvil I; thence through a conductor28 to the No. 2 contact It on the tens selector device: thence through aconductor 40 to the No. 2 sensing linger in the tens column where thecircuit will be broken. since there isno No. 2 hole in the tens columnof the card. This card will. therefore, be held underneath the sensingfingers until called icr q later. The sensing ilngers will. oi course,contlnue to be moved up and down until this card number is called. butuntil the card number is called, a proper circuit for causing electionwill notbe established.

I-will now consider the case where the number punched in the card beinga aiyaed is of a higher order than the number se up by the selectordevices but in which there is correspondence between the digits in thenumber set up by the selector devices and the digit perforationscorresponding in the card. Assume, for example, that the card beinganalyzed is No. 13, while the number set up by the selector device is I.It will be seen, from what has been stated heretofore that this cardwould be ejected unless means were provided for preventing suchelection. The preventing means provided for this purpose comprise amake-and-break contact device "a in the circuit for the conditioningrelay II, which make-and-breakdevice is controlled by the relav 20connected to the contact is which, it will be remembered, is selectivelyand successively engageable with contacts connected with the anvils andmounted on the same slide Ila (Fig. '1) on which the connector contactis for the conditioning relay is mounted. The anvil connector contact isfor the disabling relay III is so positioned with respect to the anvilconnector contact is 'for the conditioning relay it that it will connectwith the anvil of the next higher order above that to which the contactfor the conditioning relay is connected. The disabling relay 20 is sodesigned that it will operate to open contact device "a and break thecircuit for the conditioning relay it before the conditioning relay canoperate. In order to provide a circuit for operating this relay 20, thewiping contact comb 2i (Fig. 16) is provided having ten contact fingersIi, one for each digit in a column, which contact comb is also mountedon. the same slide ila on which the anvil connector contact It for theconditioning relay is mounted. This contact comb 2| co-operates with aset of contacts 52 (Fig. 16) which are electrically connected, one witheach finger of the set of sensing fingers 4 except those sensing fingersin the units colt. The "2.461; comb is so positioned and designed thatit will supply current to that column of fingers I which is directlyabove and cooperates with that anvil 8 to which the disabling relaycontact is is connected. Under these conditions and assuming, asaforesaid, that the number set up on the selector devices is 3 and thatthe card being analyzed is IS, the circuit will be from the line I!through the conductors 53 and i4 and through the contact comb II to theNo. 1 contact finger in the tens column, which is allowed by theperforation on the card to engage the tens anvil 8 from whence thecircuit is through a conductor ll to the disabling relay contact l9,thence through the disabling relay 20, conductors 55 and 58, contacts88a of the switch It, conductor 4| and switch It to the other side 48 ofthe line. An ejecting circuit would also have been established exceptfor the fact that the disabling relay." is so designed that it willoperate before the conditioning relay can operate. The'disabling relay20 when operated may also, if desired, establish a signal circuitthrough a signal device 5] by means of the contact device 50 which mayindicate to the operator that a card is misplaced if the signal is maderepeatedly over a long period. e

I will now describe, in more detail, various parts of the apparatus.

Drive for the selectors and sensing finders (Figs. 3, 7 and 12) Thedrive for the sensing finger head is from the motor I! through the worml9, worm gear 60, bevel gear Bi rotatable with the worm gear. bevel gear62 meshing with the bevel gear I l, shaft 03 on which the bevel gear ismounted, bevel gear ll mounted on the shaft. bevel gear ll driven fromthe bevel gear 04, shaft "on which the bevel l0 gear II is mounted.eccentric 24 on this shaft, and eccentric strap fl driven by theeccentric.

'on which strap the sensing finger head I is mounted.

The upper selector mechanism and associated parts for the card holder iare driven from the horizontal shaft il'l (Figs. 3 and 9). The lowerselector devices and associated mechanism for the card holder 2 aredriven from the lower horizontal shaft '8. The drivefrom the motor 21 tothe upper horizontal shaft t'l includes a bevel gear Bl meshing with thebevel gear ii", a shaft It on which this bevel gear II is mounted, abevel gear ii mounted on this shaft 10, a bevel gear I! meshing withthis bevel gear II, a shaft ll on which gear I I is mounted, aneccentric 14 mounted on this shaft ll, a slide II with followers Ila inengagement with the periphery. of the eccentric H, shiftable back andforth by the eccentric I4 and guided by the slots It and co-operatingpins 11, a pawl 18 mounted on this slide, a ratchet wheel 10 driven stepby step by the pawl 18 and retained in each successive step by a pawl18a, a bevel gear ll rotatable with the ratchet wheel 18, a bevel gearIi meshing with this bevel gear.

'a shaft 82 on which the bevel gear ii is splined,

a bevel gear 88 mounted on the shaft I2. and a bevel gear 84 driven fromthe bevel gear SI and mounted on the upper horizontal drive shaft 01 forthe upper set of selectors. The drive for the lower selector includesthe bevel gear I! driven from the step-by-step driven bevel gear 80, ashaft 88 on which the bevel gear is splined, a bevel gear 81 mounted onthis shaft, a bevel gear ll meshing with this bevel gear. a spur gear l9rotatable with this bevel gear, and a spur gear Oil meshing with thespur gear "and mounted on the horizontalshaft Bl for the lower set ofselectors.

In order to disconnect the drive from the selectors for setting, etc.,the bevel gears ill and It are splined on their shafts so that they canbe slid to non-meshing position against the action of the springs ii. Inorder to unmesh the gears 8i and ii, a cam .02 is provided having camportions engaging the gears 8| and It and rotatable about the shaft Ol.This cam 92 may be rocked to unmesh the gears ll and l! by means of ahand lever 04 (Figs. 2. 8 and 12). This hand lever 8| is pivotallymounted at 95, and is connected with the cam 02 by means of a link 06,and an arm 91 rotatable with the cam as. The operation of the hand lever94 also causes the line switch 45 to open (Figs. 1 and 3,) anddisconnects all of the Geneva drives between the selectors 8 as will bedescribed in more detail later.

The upper and lower sets of selector devices are substantiallyduplicates. The construction of one of these, the upper one, is shown indetail in Figs. '7 to 12, inclusive. Before describing these in detail,it may be well to state that manually operable selective means areprovided for choosing any one of the selector devices as the unitsselector device, and for disconnecting from the drive all of theselector units to the right of the one chosen as the units device. Thesemeans are also in duplicate. One of the purposes of this construction isto enable the analysis of a card in which the number of columns in thecard used for indicating the card number is less than the number ofselectors 9 in the apparatus. Thus, if a series of cards ran up to only99,999 and if the field, including these columns. was at the extreme endof the card. it would be necessary to throw out of commission the fourright-hand semission between adjacent selector units l is so designedthat it can be placed in inoperative condition so that there will be nodrive between two adjacent units. For this purpose. the change or tenstransfer pinion ll of each Geneva drive is mounted on a slidablecrosshead ill mounted in suitable fl des ill. a spring ill beingprovided which normally holds the Geneva drive in operative relationwith respect ,to the two adjacent selector devices I with which itco-operates. In order to disconnect any desired one of these Genevadrives, a pair of manually operable turnbuttons ill (Figs. 2 and U areprovided. one for each of the two sets of selector devices. whichrespectively drive a pair of cam shafts ill (Figs. 7 and 12) on each ofwhich is mounted eight cams ill. one for each of the Geneva drives ll.The cam portions ill of these cams are set in spiral relation to shaftill so that. by setting the cam shaft in the desired position. anydesired oneof the Geneva drives maybe put out of commission. Each ofthese cams ill is in eo-operative relation with a rock member illpivotally mounted at i Ill and having a notch or fork ill for receivinga trunnion ill .on the crosshead ill which carries the change pinion ofthe Geneva drive. When one of these cam members pushes the upper end ofthe rock member ill to the right. as viewed in Fig. 12, the crossheadill will be depressed to move the change pinion ll of the Geneva driveout of operative position and to move a tooth of pinion as into a notchilib. (Fig. 1'!) of post Ilia in the stationary frame of the crossheadcarriage, thus preventing any torsional movement to he accidentallyimparted to the change pinion ll while in unmeshed position.

In order that power may be supplied to the 46 contact ii of the selectorchosen as the units selector in the event that any selector other thanthe one at the extreme right (as seen in Fig. i) is chosen, it isnecessary to provide an additional contact lie in the circuit of theselectors. As shown in Fig. 1. power from the conductor ll is leddirectly to the contact ii of the right-hand selector. If any selectorother than the righthand selector is chosen as the units selector, powerfrom the conductor il must be shifted to the contact ii of the selectorchosen as the units selector and must remain in this conditionthroughout the analysis of the cards. Figs. 1,7 and 12 show how thiscontact 2 ie may be mounted and controlled by means of theturnbutton'lll when making the selection of the units selector. Thiscontact lie is mounted on a frame lib. which is slidably mounted on theguide rod Ill and axially shiftable with the shaft ll. As the shaft llremains stationary after being set, the contact llc will maintain itsposition throughout the analysis of the cards. The siidable frame lib isshown as secured to a pair of collars lio hymeans of screws lil, thecollars lig being located on opposite sides of the hub of one of thegears ill so that axial shifting of this gear will cause a correspondingshifting of the frame lib carrying the contact piece llc. As will bepointed out more in detail hereinafter. this contact lic connectsselectively with one of the anvil banks l and hence with one of theconductors ll leading to the movable contact ii for one of the selectorsto the left of the right-hand selector, as viewed in Fig. 1. By suitableshifting of the contact lic, it may be brought into connection withanyone of the selectors to the left of the righthand selector '.toenable any one of theseselectors to be chosen as the units selector. Inorder to provide a torque multiplication between the turnbutton and camshaft for easy shifting, a back-geared construction is provided (Figs. 7and l2),*including a pinion iii swiveled on the cam shaft ill and havinga squared hole to receive the squared'end of the shank ill of theturnbutton, a spur gear ill. meshing with this pinion. a pinion i-ilrotatable with the spur gear ill, and a spur gear ill meshing with thispinion ill and mountedon the cam shaft ill.

In order to indicate the position of the cam shaft and hence show whichone of the Geneva drives is disconnected. a rotatable indicator dialshaft ill on which the pinion H8 is mounted. a

pinion ill mounted on the shaft ill and a spur gear Ill meshing with thepinion ill to which the indicator dial ill is secured.

In order denniteiy to position the turnbutton ill and hence the camshaft ill when in set position. a pin ill is provided mounted on a discill secured to the shank ill of the turnbutton and co-operating with ahole in the casing. The turnbutton and shank are shiftable axially toenable this pin ill to be moved out of the hole when it is desired toset the cam shaft. The back gearing between the turnbutton llland thecam shaft ill is such that a complete revolution of the turnbutton willshift the cam shaft one-eighth of a revolution to change the point ofdisconnection between the selectors from one Geneva gear to the nextadjacent Geneva gear.

Since it is proposed to use any desired one of the selectors as theunitaselector device, means must be provided for shifting the point ofdrivin: connection to correspond with the selector chosen so that theselector chosen as the units selector will be driven direct from themain drive.

Before describing the means by which this shift in driving point iseffected. I will briefly describe the Geneva drive. this drive beingidentical for each of the selector units. This Geneva drive comprises alarge driven gear ill (Figs, 3, 9 and 12) which may be selectivelyconnected with the main drive, a hub ill on which this gear is mountedand a conventional form of Geneva gearing including the Geneva drivedisk ll secured to hub ill, the change pinion ll and the gear ill fixedon the hub or sleeve ill (Figs. 12 and 13) on which the rotatable wipercontact ii of the selector l is mounted. All of the hubs ill and Ill maybe rotatably mounted on a shaft ill (Figs. 3, 9 and 12). In order toshift the point of drive from shaft ll to any desired one of the largegears ill, a set of drive gears is provided, one drive gear ill beingprovided for each of the large driven gears, the spacing of the drivegears ill being somewhat less than the spacing of the driven gears ill.these drive gears ill being mounted on the drive shaft l! which isshiftable axially to bring any desired one of the drive gears ill intooperative relation with its co-operating driven gear ill. This shlft'indriving point must be effected in correspondence with i which determinesthe axial position of the drive shaft II and hence determines which oneof the driven gears I will be connected with a driving gear ill. Themeans by which the position of the snail cam determines the axialposition or the drive shaft ll comprises a cam follower roller "Ico-operating with the snail cam I", a rock arm ill on which thisfollower roller is mounted. a link III pivotally connected with the rockarm III, a rocker yoke Ill pivotally mounted at ill to which the link I"is pivotally connected at I", and a bracket III slidably mounted on apair of guide pins ill extending from the frame plate Ill and controlledin its slidable movement hi? the enga ement of the cross bar I oi theyoke I with a stud Ill secured to the bracket ill. the shaft 01carryingthe series of drive gears I28 being swiveled in the bracket IIIas indicated at ill so as to be moved axially when the bracket is causedto slide on its guide pins ill. The design of the cam I" is such that arotation of the cam shaft Ill, sumcient to shift the point ofdisconnection of the Geneva drive from one selector to the next adjacentselector, will also be sufilcient to shift the shaft ll axially enoughto change the point of drive from one of the gears II! to the nextadjacent gear I", thus shifting the drive from one selector to the nextadjacent selector. Thus. when the turnbutton it: is manipulated tochoose one of the selectors as the units selector, the drive from one ofthe gears III will automatically be connected with this chosen selector.

From what'has been said. it will be seen that it is necessary to providemeans for advancing the contacts I, II and II (Figs. 1 and 7) stepbystep each time the number set up by the selectors changes from one orderto the next higher order. Thus, when the set-up is changed from 9 to 10,the conductors II, is and II should be advanced one step. when thenumber set up changes from 99 to 100. the aforesaid contacts should beshifted another step, etc. It is also necessary that these contactsshould be initially placed in proper position to co-operate with thatselector which is chosen for the units selector. In order to accomplishthese results. the contacts ll, ll and II are mounted on the carriageIla (Fig. 7) which is slidably mounted on a guide rod i extendingbetween the frame members ill and I". This sliding carriage :laisaublect to two controls, one from the same rocker yoke I whichcontrols the axial position of the drive shaft II. and another controlwhich is exercised by a gear driven cam I (Figs. 7 and 12) whichactuates a rock arm I41 on which a pawl I 'ls mounted, co-operating witha rack I secured to the siidable carriage Ila. There is. however. aco-operation between the two controls, in that the control by the rockeryoke Ill selectively connects one of the gears. III on the slidableshaft III with the selected one of the gears III associated with theselectors 8. However. after this initial drive connection has beeneffected. the drive will thereafter be automatically shifted from timeto time as the order of the number set up by the selectors changes, thislatter shift being effected by the aforesaid cam I which operates toadvance the rack one step each time the cam is rotated. this cam havingan abrupt drop which allows the spring Ill! to snap the upper end of thearm I" to the left, as seen in Fig. '7, to cause the pawl "I to advancethe rack Ml one step each time that the order changes.

In order to make the yoke-controlled shift for the selector driveeffective. the gears illlv on the axially movable shaft III are spaceddiifercntly from the idler gears ill with which they are selectivelymeshed. these idler gears being driven from the selector gears I24.respectively, and being mounted on a shaft I mounted on the side platesI" and I. The yoke-controlled movement of the shaft ill on which the setof driven gears in are mounted is eifected by means of a segment gear I"pivotaily mounted at ill on a stationary frame or bracket lita andconnected by a link Ill with an extension Ill on the slidable bracketI31 which controls the axial movement of the gears Ill. This segmentgear I" engages a rack Ill on a slide iill mounted on the guide rod I,this slide having a linger ill engaging the hub of one of the gears ilfl(Figs. 7, 8 and 9) so that the sliding movement of this slide I" willeii'ect axial movement ofthe entire set of gears I50 mounted on the gearshaft ill. The arrangement and design is such that the initial settingof the rocker yoke III by means of the turnbutton III! will connect oneof the driven gears I" with the idler ll! corresponding to the selectorchosen for the units selector.

After this initial positioning of the gear shaft and set of gears. itwill thereafter be given a step-by-step movement by means of the pawlI48 and rack 9. a one-step movement being effected each time the orderof the number set up by the selector changes. Thus, when the order ofthe number set up by the selectors changes from units to tens. the gearset will be shifted to bring one of the gears I" into mesh with theidler ill corresponding to the tens selector; when the number set up bythe selectors changes from the tens to the hundreds order, the gear setwill be shifted to bring one of the gears I50 into mesh with the idlerI58 corresponding to the hundreds selector device. etc. This will causea corresponding step-by-step advance of the contacts IB, II and It. asthe order of the number set up by the selectors changes. From the above,it will be understood that the first axial movement of the gears I58 andshaft III is effected by means of the finger iii on the slide controlledby the snail cam I".

It will be seen that it is necessary to disconnect the pawl I from therack I" when the turnbuttcn I08 is being used to make the initial choiceof the units selector, as this setting of the button I not only choosesthe units selector but also is designed to connect the desired one ofthe gears lill with the idler ill corresponding to the units selector.In this setting action, the slide 2ia must be free to assume a positiondetermined by the shifter finger Iii and consequently must be free fromthe pawl Ml.

In order to eflect this disconnection of the pawl I48. means areprovided whereby pushing in the turnbutton l0! against the action of thecoil compression spring ll! (Figs. '1 and 12) to free the pin I22 fromthe holein the side of the casing will automatically throw out the pawl8. The means provided for this purpose comprises a spring-pressed bellcrank lever "I. one end I of which bears against a disc II! on which thepin I2: is mounted and one arm ill of which is connected wtih the pawlill by means of a link I". This bell crank lever it! is pivotallymounted at I68 on a bracket ill secured to the side frame plate Ill. Acoil tension spring I10 is provided connected to another arm ili of thebell crank lever which tends to hold the pawl m in co-operative relationwith respect to theraclli.

It may be desirable to provide indicating means for showing the numberset uphy the selectors and for this purpose a plurality of numberedindicating wheels I12 (Figs. 2 and 12) may be provided, one for eachselector. each of these number wheels being driven direct fromthecorresponding selector gear I which meshes with a gear Ill (Figs. 8 and12) rotatable with the number wheel "2. These number wheels arerotatabiy mounted on a common shaft i'll extending between the frameplates I" and I.

In connection with the above description, it will be understood that thelower set of selector mechanisms, including the, selectors l. the setsof gears Ill, ill. I", idlers Ill, and numbering wheel gears. is asubstantial duplicate of the upper set of selector mechanisms describedin detail, the same reference rs being used for corresponding parts inthe twoselector mechanisms. In setting the selector mechanisms, theyshould always he set to similar positions; that is. correspondingselectors should be chosen iorthc units selector in both sets. etc.

Stop may It is desirable that means he provided i'or automaticallystopping the operation of the machine when a certain number has been setup by the selector devices other words. if the operator knows that thehigh card to be filed is 100,000, it is desirable that machine be set tostop its operation when the No. 100,000 card he's-been reached. Forthis'purposc. the switch 88. is provided, operated by the relay II.which will break the main line circuit and stop the machine. The circuitfor the relay is itself is controlled by means of a' make-and-breakcontact device I'll actuating the contacts I" (Figs. 1, 7 and 11) theclosing oi which is effected by means of an adiustable stop ill, theposition of which stop is controlled bymeans of a manually operableturnbiitton I11 (Figs; 1, S. 7 and 11). The makeand-break contact deviceitself is mounted on the slide lie. when the slide lid in its movementbrings the pivoted contact-actuator I'll into engagement with theadiustable cam stop "I, the actuator I18 is depressed, causing thecontacts ill to close as the actuator ill presses down on the slide pinit! which engages the upper contact us. This closing of the contactsenergises the relay is, opening the switch is and stopping the operationof the apparatus. The switch II is held in either open or closedposition by means of the double acting hprlng latch ill (Fig. 'i). Theturnbutton Ill controls the position of the cam stop by means of apinion ill onthe shank of the turnbutton meshing with a rack I" on theslide I which carries the cam stop. In order to definitely position thecam stop, the bushing 108,111 which the shank of the turnbutton isslidabiy and rotatably mounted. may have a plurality ofproperly spacednotches cooperating with cog radial ribs on the upper face of theenlarged portion ill of the turnbutton shank. A coil compression springIll normally holds the radial ribs in engagement with the radialnotches. A similar adjustable cam stop. turnbutton and associatedmechanism are provided for the lower selector mechanism.

In order to provide proper spacing and operation ofthe contacts llandilandtoenabletheshifts rines 10 may be employed. As here shown. ninecontact points I corresponding to anto e; inclusive. are arrangedin'three per- .the contactpointsofonerow being staggered with respect tothe contacts or the other row. Each of thecontsct wipers it and II maybe inthe form of a three-fingered contact member, one fingerco-operating. respectivel'y,withoneiofthethreerowsofcontaotpointsleading to the anvils. With this arrangement in the first position, theupper contact finger of the contact member II (as viewed in Fig. 10)will be in engagement with the contact II! for the No. 1 anvil; thesecond contact finger or the contact piece is will be in engagement withthe contact point iill for the No. 2 anvil, and all of the other contactfingers of the contact pieces ll and II will not be in engagement withany of the contact points for the anvils. when the slide lid is shiftedone step to the left. as viewed in Fig.

"I, it will bring the middle contact finger of the contact piece It intoengagement with the contact point ill for the No. 2 anvil and will bringthe lower contact-finger of the contact piece 10 into cut with thecontact point II. for the'l'lo. S anvil. when the slide lid is shiftedanother notch to the left, it will bring the lower contact finger of thecontact piece 18 into engagement with the contact point Ill corresponding to the Ho. 3 anvil and will bring the upper contact finger of thecontact piece ll into engagement, with the contact point Illcorresponding to the No. 4 anvil. Successive steps oi. the slide willsuccessively establish the desired cmtact between the emtact pieces IIand II and the anvils be similar in shape to the contact pieces II andII and may be made to cooperate with the upper ends of the contacts I",as shown in Fig. I. This enables current to be supplied to the movablecontact ll of the selector chosen as the units selector.

It may sometimes be desirable to set the selector mechanisms initiallyto some desired numher. Thus. the operator may know that none of thecards to be filed are lower than, for in stance, 6,000. Knowing this. hecan avoid uselessoperatlon of the apparatus by setting both selectormechanisms up to this number. Fonthis purpose, it is desirable todisconnect all of the change pinions is operating between the selectormechanism s, since it would be impossible to set the selector devicesseparately and individually if the Geneva drives were in eilectiveposition. In order equally to disconnect all of the Geneva drives, meansare provided whereby depressing the lever 04 will disconnect the drivescollectively. The means provided for this urpose comprises a set offingers as (Fig. 3). one for each of the slidable crossheads I00 onwhich the change pinions as are mounted. These fingers II! are mountedon the shaft II on which the lever is mounted and each finger engages apin I on the crosshead illtso that when the lever 04 is depressed all ofthe crossheads are moved forward to disconnect the change pinions 9!.Depression of the lever to at the same time unmeshes the bevel pinionsll and It so that they are free to rotate. Depression of the lever IIalso allows the switch it to open so that the power is disconnected.

The previously described contact piece He may 17 Sensing fingers andhead sensing fingers l are slidably mounted in a perfo-' rated guidingand positioning plate "I which is mounted on and moves up and down withthe head 9 as it is reciprocated by means of the eccentrlc strap 28.These sensing fingers 4 mustbe yieldingly mounted so that ii there is noperforation in a card corresponding to one the fing'ers, the head canmove downwardly without causing the sensing finger to injure the card.For this purpose. the upper end of each sensing finger is provided witha head I92 which is held between an apertured plate I93 ofnon-conducting material and a spring finger I94 of conducting material.the insulating plate I93 serving as a lifting plate and the springfinger I9 serving as a depressing finger which will yield in case thereis no perforation in the card corresponding to this finger. The sensingfinger may extend through an opening in the lifter plate I93, the springfinger [9| resting on the upper ends of the head I92 oi the sensingfinger. Theaper- -tured plates I93 and spring fingers I94 may be clampedor otherwise suitably secured to the upper end of the eccentric strap29. The means shown for this purpose comprises a stack of clampingplates I95 of insulating material held together by clamping screws I98.The sensing fingers I94 are of conducting material, each sensing -fingerbeing connected with a conductor 99 leading to one of the contacts IIIon one of the selectors 9.

In order to uide the card as it is being fed under the sensing fingers,a guide roller or spool I91 is provided having side flanges I99co-operating with the side edges of the card. In order to enable properejection of the card, means must be provided whereby this guide rollerI91 will be lifted clear of the path of the card as the card is beingejected and yet will enable theguide roller to be completely depressedwhen the sensing finger head I is in its highest position and anothercard is being fed under the sensing finger. For this purpose the guideroller is mounted on a carriage or slide I99, which carriage is mountedfor vertical sliding movement on the head IS, a pair of coil compressionsprings 299 being provided, tending to hold the roller carriage I99 inits lowermost position. This carriage I99 may be guided in its slidingmovement by means of two pairs of pins 29I engaging the side edges ofthe vertical portions of the carriage and a third pair of pins 292extending through slots in the vertical side portions of the carriageI99. In order to pick up the carriage I99 and guide roller I91 after thesensing operation and move the guide roller I91 out of the way to enablethe ejection of the card, a pair 01 spring-pressed latches 293 areprovided, one for each side of the carriage I99 which catch under aflange 294 on the slidably mounted roller carriage when the sensingfinger head is fully depressed. As the sensing finger head 9 rises, thislatch 293 will carry the roller carriage upwardly with it until an arm299 on the latch engages a fixed stop 299 on a fixed portion of theapparatus, whereupon the latches 293 are released and the springs 299snap the roller carriage I99 and roller I91 down into position to guidethe next card into position under the sensin fingers.

' As shown in Fig. 18, it may be possible to dispense with one oi thetwo sets of selector mechanisms by providing double sets of contacts I9and II on the rotors of the selector devices. With this construction,the extra set of contacts I9 and II takes the place or the set ofcontacts I9 and II of the rotors on the lower selector mechanism. thusallowing the entire lower selector mechanism to be dispensed with. Thiscon struction requires a somewhat longer apparatus.

due to theextra space required for the duplicate sets of contacts on therotors but avoids a dupiication of the sets of gears I2, I24, I59, I53and I13. A separate set of contacts I9, I9, 2| and lie must also beprovided.

By designing the drive so that the sensing finger head 5 will make aplurality of operations for each step of the selector mechanism, theapparatus may be used for reassembling duplicate, triplicate orquadruplicate sets of cards. when thus designed, it will be seen thateach card number will be called a plurality of times that is to say. ifthe cards are in duplicate. each card will he called twice if the cardsare in triplicate. each card will be called three times, etc. Thus, nomatter in which of the pockets the cards are found, they will all becalled and ejected at the proper time. By making one ejection table at ahigher level than the other, the order of filing of the duplicate ortriplicate cards may be determined.

Figs. 19 and 19a show diagrammatically circuits and apparatus forwithdrawing any desired cards from a file of cards by means of suitablyperforated master or key cards. In using this apparatus, a set of keycards are provided with perforations corresponding to the perforationsin the cards which it is desired to withdraw from the file. The keycards are placed in one pocket 293a and the file cards in another pocket296?). A key card is fed from the bottom of the pocket 299a of the keycards underneath the sensing finger head 9 and simultaneously a card isfed from the bottomoi the stack of cards in the file pocket 2915bunderneath the sensing finger head So for the file cards. If the cardfrom the file corresponds in number to the key card, both cards will beelected from underneath the sensing fingers, the key card if desiredgoing in one pocket and the file card going into the pocket for cardswhich it is desired to withdraw. If the file card withdrawn and fedunderneath the head to does not correspond to the key card withdrawn andfed underneath the key card head 6, the key card will not be ejected butthe withdrawn file card will be ejected into a third pocket orreceptacle separate from the cards which it is desired to havewithdrawn. For this purpose. three ejector relays are provided, ejectorrelay 291 when actuated serving to eject the key card from underneaththe sensing fingers, ejector relay 299 serving when energized to ejectthe file card into the receptacle for the cards which it is desired towithdraw and the ejector relay 299 serving to eject the file eard iromunderneath the sensing fingers into the receptacle tor the cards winchit is not desired to have withdrawn. A single conditicning relay 2I9serves when energized to establish circuits which will cause theenergization oi both of the rejecting relays 291 and 299 so that whenthis conditioning relay is operated, the key card will he ejected intoits receptacle and the file card will be elected into the .receptaclefor the desired cards. If the conditioning relay 2I9 isnot energized,which will be the case when the file card does not match the key card, acircuit will be established which will energize the ejector relay 299for electing the file card

